Zelenskyy says he is listening to protesters' demands and hasn't made final decision yet

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said it is right that Ukrainians are able to hold peaceful protests and express their views even during wartime, adding that he has not yet reached a final decision on the issue they have raised.

Source: Zelenskyy at a press conference on 16 July

Quote: "Regarding the people who came out [to protest – ed.] – we are fighting for freedom and democracy, so I think we are doing everything right. And people are doing what they want to do. They wanted to come out and protest, and that's the right thing to do. And if people can express their will even during the war, with all its difficulties and restrictions, then I think that's the most important thing."

Details: Zelenskyy added that he not only listens to people, he often responds to their questions, even though at times he would rather not so as not to let Russia know about them as well.

Quote: "So I understand, I listen, and I even respond. I mean, I respond to some things where I wouldn't want to go into too much detail. Not because there are secrets from our society – there are secrets from the Russians."

More details: Commenting on the possible appointment of acting Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko as defence minister, the president said he is considering Klymenko as "one of the candidates" and that he has "not yet submitted the relevant documents to Parliament".

Zelenskyy also said he believes Klymenko has some very strong qualities and is capable of dealing with the problem of "shameful busification practices" during mobilisation. [Busification is the controversial practice of forced mobilisation in which recruitment officers detain men in public, often bundling them onto minibuses to transport them to enlistment offices – ed.]

Quote: "But again, this is a question I am still considering... Well, that's it. I'm trying to put an ellipsis at the end of my answer, because I haven't put a full stop there yet."

Read more: Lies, isolation, blocking: Fedorov names 11 major problems he found in Defence Ministry

Previously: Earlier on 16 July, protests in support of acting Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov took place near the President's Office in Kyiv and in a number of Ukrainian cities. The protesters called on the authorities to reinstate Fedorov in the new government and not to hand the defence minister post over to Ihor Klymenko.

Commenting on the upcoming changes at the Defence Ministry, Zelenskyy acknowledged that Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi have been unable to work together effectively and that problems on the battlefield, in military brigades and with mobilisation remain unresolved.

Background:

• On 14 July, the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) approved Yuliia Svyrydenko's resignation as prime minister, a decision which entails the resignation of the entire government.
• Ukrainska Pravda sources said the authorities planned to form the new government on 15 July. The Verkhovna Rada was expected to vote on the new Cabinet of Ministers on 16 July.
• Ukrainska Pravda sources within the Servant of the People parliamentary faction said Zelenskyy would not put Fedorov forward for the post of defence minister. He was expected to nominate acting Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.
• Sources in the faction also said Fedorov is still on the president's team, "but what he will do next will become clearer next week".
• On 15 July, Fedorov summed up his tenure as defence minister, outlining what he had not managed to accomplish and stressing that he would continue his mission to "defeat the enemy through asymmetry, the speed of innovation and the power of organisation".

Your support on Patreon helps us keep the news free and accessible.